Gijón's main beach is Playa San Lorenzo, a 1.5-kilometre urban beach running along the north edge of the city centre, backed by the Paseo de Begoña promenade. This is a genuinely city beach — the buildings come right up to the sand — which gives it an energy and convenience that more isolated beaches lack, while also meaning it fills up completely in July and August. The Bay of Biscay water here is Atlantic rather than Mediterranean: clean, cold (rarely above 18°C even in August), and capable of surf. Bodyboarders and surfers use the western end year-round.
Playa de Poniente runs west from the Cimadevilla headland on the port side, smaller and more sheltered than San Lorenzo. It's popular with families for its calmer conditions and the shade cast by the headland in the afternoons. Further west along the city coast, Playa de San Pedro is a wilder beach outside the main tourist circuit, backed by the Deva estuary, with dunes and less development. The local surf school uses San Pedro for lessons when San Lorenzo is too crowded. All Gijón beaches face north and receive the full force of Atlantic storms in autumn and winter, which makes for dramatic walking even when swimming is out of the question.